www.bifa.org


Profile


BIFAlink


to evaluate all trailers before they were loaded. “As the trailers are bespoke, great care has to


be taken to ensure that no damage occurs,” he stated. “Many of the amusement trailers are very wide, high, and very low to the ground, which creates problems with ground clearance, so we make sure we have a supply of timber positioned at the front of the ramp as during the course of the lading the angle of the ramp changes. “We loaded the awkward trailers first in order to


Ucargo masterminds carnival cavalcade


Award winning Ucargo organised the complete transportation of a large carnival from around the world to Hong Kong. Giles Large reports.


Ucargo won the Project Forwarding Award, sponsored by Peter Lole Insurance Brokers, at the 28th annual BIFA Freight Service Awards ceremony held in London in February. The project that won the company the award involved moving a complete carnival from the UK, Europe, US and Asia to Hong Kong, consisting of 38 amusement trailers of various sizes together with 30 containers, all of which had to be done to a very tight schedule. The judges pointed out: “Having secured the


project, Ucargo found itself in the unusual position of having not one but 35 clients as owner- operators of the carnival equipment, all of whom had a vested interest in seeing their equipment handled correctly and returned to them safely. “Ucargo demonstrated exceptional


supervision and planning with a very hands-on approach throughout this project,” they added. Ucargo specialises in carnivals and festivals,


providing transport for ground equipment, marquees, stage equipment and lighting. “We started with only some part-time staff, who were members of our families, and have slowly built up our reputation in the UK and elsewhere,” stated Tony Kennedy, Ucargo Partner. “Whereas festivals are normally domestic, carnivals tend to be international and are fairly major events. I have


December 2017


been involved in this for about 25 years. They have had their ups and downs but certainly over the last few years there has been a resurgence in carnival organisers going abroad, mainly to the Middle East and the Far East, which is where we had this huge operation in Hong Kong.”


Quotation The company was approached to provide rates and a schedule to move the complete carnival for the season. This involved moving a large shipment of trailers and containers from the UK and Northern Europe, as well as a number of other locations around the world. This traffic had to arrive in Hong Kong by a specific date, 1 December, allowing just 16 days for site build-up. Shipping a carnival is a very involved


operation, dealing with the promoter who in this case was dealing with 35 amusement owners and operators. Once the promoter had issued individual contracts and all parties had been signed-off, Ucargo was able to start the operational process at the beginning of October. It arranged for all trailers to be delivered to the


departure ports of Southampton and Zeebrugge a few days prior to the scheduled arrival of the NYK ro-ro vessel. Ucargo staff were at both ports


make sure they were loaded properly, and we personally inspected every trailer after lashing had been completed. A lot of the trailers were on air bags, which took time to settle, and this is when lashings could then become free and damage could occur,” he said. “We completed loading in six hours. There was tea and toast at the end, so we must have done a good job,” he commented. The team then travelled to Hong Kong to


prepare for the vessel’s arrival on 30 November. They worked through the night, using their own tractor units to discharge the vessel and move the trailers five miles to the carnival site, which was done before the deadline of 6am. For four of the larger trailers, Ucargo used a tug barge to take them, as they would not fit through Hong Kong’s road tunnels. Some of the trailers weighed up to 60 tonnes, were up to 18 m long, 2.6 m wide and 4.8 m high.


Critical time The team then moved to the site to oversee build-up. “This was a critical time, as the carnival was scheduled to open on 17 December,” he said. “We had a site office to monitor all incoming equipment from the USA, Philippines and China, and to co-ordinate with the site manager.” Once this was achieved, the team looked for a


suitable vessel for the return shipment, which was not as easy as it might sound, as not a lot of ro-ro traffic leaves Hong Kong. There was time pressure to move cargo off the site once the carnival had finished and the team had to arrange with the port authority for storage of up to five days prior to the vessel’s arrival. Storage space in the port is both very limited and costly. The vessel arrived on 3 March, cargo was loaded and later discharged in Southampton and Zeebrugge. Perhaps the best indication of a job well done


was the note received from Brian Davies, director of ride operations at The Great European Carnival, which said: “Thank you to the Ucargo team for organising the shipping for the carnival and taking a hands-on approach to the project. Communication was excellent; any obstacles were overcome effectively and swiftly. I am looking forward to working together for the carnival again.”


15


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20